


maybe, i'm afraid

by snflwervol69



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: DNF, Dream is clueless, M/M, Pining, Songfic I guess?, Unrequited Crush, angst I guess?, dreamnotfound, george is in over his head
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:27:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27636797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snflwervol69/pseuds/snflwervol69
Summary: Inspired by the prompt "What gives you butterflies?" and the song maybe, i'm afraid by lovelytheband.George always had a bit of a crush on Dream, but he was able to push his feelings away, knowing their friendship was more important, but after they meet for the first time George can't stop his feelings. Sometimes he looks at Dream and thinks he might see admiration beyond just being best friends, but George is too afraid to make a move.
Relationships: Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound
Comments: 12
Kudos: 224





	1. Chapter 1

George is shifting his weight back and forth, his nerves clearly getting the best of him. He would be pacing if he weren’t standing in the middle of a crowded airport. Dream had told George he’d pick him up, and now he was patiently waiting, watching other travelers pass by, other families reunite while he stood alone.

He tries not to look at his watch too often and puts trust in Dream. He still hasn’t ever shown George his face, today would be the first time he’d see the face of his best friend. He just had to trust that Dream would find him in the crowd, and he did. He always trusted Dream.

That wasn’t why he was nervous. He was nervous because in person, feelings are much harder to hide. George couldn’t lie to himself, he definitely felt something for Dream beyond just friendship, but online he could cover those sentiments with jokes. Dream couldn’t see him blush over the phone, and without looking at Dream, it was easier to brush things off. Now, he’d be face to face with Dream. Now there was no hiding from this. Dream would see everything. He would see George as he was, not GeorgeNotFound, just George. He’d never felt so utterly exposed.

Behind him, he hears an all too familiar voice. “George?”

He whirls around and his eyes fall on a pair of black converse, blue jeans, a simple gray hoodie, and then it’s Dream’s face. The face he’s been longing to see for years.

_Gorgeous._

Dream is everything George imagined and more. He has a strong jawline and a smile that makes George’s chest hurt. His eyes look more brown to George, but he knows they’re green. Dream’s sandy hair is messy and some falls into his eyes.

George has so many butterflies in his stomach he feels like he might fly away. This is Dream. This is the guy he’s been best friends with, all this time. _I did something right._

“Dream?” he asks, hating how timid his voice had suddenly become.

Dream’s smile widens and he pulls George into a hug. Dream is tall enough that his chin rests on top of George’s head and Dream’s chest is firm and strong. The embrace is warm and reassuring. George takes a deep breath, inhaling Dream’s scent, homey and inviting.

Dream pulls away and grins at George, and he prays Dream doesn’t notice the flush of pink on his cheeks as their eyes meet.

 _I’m so fucked,_ George tells himself as he follows Dream out of the airport.

“Are you sure it’s that way?” George asks from over Dream’s shoulder. 

They’re streaming together. More accurately, Dream is streaming and George is “being a backseat driver”. They aren’t actually making a serious video, Dream is just trying to beat the game and George is trying his best to be helpful, even though he’s not entirely paying attention.

“It definitely is,” Dream insists, running back the way they had come. He was currently searching for endermen and was trying to find the desert he’d been in earlier. 

George is close enough he could rest his chin on Dream’s shoulder, but he knows it’s a bad idea, so he stays where he is, his hands in his lap despite how badly he wants to tangle his fingers in Dream’s messy hair.

“I think you’re going the wrong way,” George says jokingly. George has no idea which way the desert is but he likes watching Dream get lost.

“I am not!” Dream argues back, but he’s laughing and his eyes are crinkled at the corners because he’s smiling so wide. He glances at George briefly and it's like being electrocuted. George has never been so hyper-aware of every cell in his body until he was here with Dream.

“George, you are not helping me.”

“What?” he asks playfully, pretending to be offended.

“How about you read off some donos while I find the desert, which is most definitely this way.”

George just rolls his eyes and grins, turning to face a different screen that has twitch pulled up. He starts reading donations out loud, most of them are roughly the same thing, and his heart swells at the overwhelming support all the viewers are giving to not just Dream, but him too.

“Thanks Katherine for the tier 1. She says, DreamNotFound kiss in real life?” George reads, and he laughs, trying his best to seem unfazed. “I don’t think Dream could handle me,” he says with a laugh, very glad they had decided against a facecam. He can’t even imagine the shade of red his face must be.

“Handle you?” Dream asks sarcastically.

“Yeah, I bet you…” George starts, but Dream is looking at him now and the butterflies are back, causing George’s words to die in his throat. At that moment, with their eyes locked on each other, faces illuminated by the screens, anything is possible. Then the moment is over and Dream looks back at the game.

“I think that you’re the one who can’t handle me,” Dream says with a gentle laugh.

“Whatever,” George says, trying his best to push any disappointment out of his tone.

George laughs at Dream’s poor attempt at moonwalking, Michael Jackson’s voice filling Dream’s kitchen. They had put the food (Dream’s own recipe for wings) in the oven already, and were now waiting for it to be ready. Dream had put all his music on shuffle and had an entire performance for every song.

The song switches and the kitchen fills with the sound of soft guitar. Across the island, Dream starts singing softly. 

“Dancing in your party dress, you’re singing me some Frank Sinatra, as you wept.”

George doesn’t know the words, he’s never heard this song, but he feels the beat and it has a nice melody. Dream rounds the island and grabs George’s hands.

“Dance with me?” he asks, his green eyes twinkling and there’s no way George could ever say no.

George has his hands around Dream’s neck, their bodies are close together and it reminds George of the hug they shared in the airport. Dream has only become more and more important to George as the days went on, but he can’t complain, especially now as they sway together in the kitchen.

Dream twirls George a few times, but they always come back to each other, George’s head resting on Dream’s chest. 

Dream sings along again, and George has his ear pressed up against Dream’s ribs, the sound of his voice filling George’s whole body.

“Maybe all we are is fools with hearts that try too hard, and maybe that’s just fine as long as you’re here in my arms.”

George lifts his head and looks up at Dream and their eyes meet. In this lighting, Dream’s eyes look closer to yellow than brown and George finds himself wishing he could see color, if only to see what color Dream’s eyes really were.

George knows he’s staring, but he can’t stop. Who knows how many moments he and Dream could have like this? He can’t let it get away. He tries to memorize every feature on Dream’s face from the scar over his eyebrow to a freckle on his cheek. From the stubble on his chin to the curve of his lips, to his eyes, that were less yellow and more of a sunset gold.

Dream’s eyes flick down and up again so fast George wonders if he had just imagined it. George copies the action, glancing at Dream’s mouth and back to his eyes, which widen in surprise, but Dream doesn’t move. He doesn’t step away or take his hand off George’s shoulder.

George leans in, just a little and then nearly jumps out of his skin as the timer goes off, signaling the food is ready.

George expects Dream to completely let him go, but he twirls George one more time before going to pull the pan out of the oven. As they divide food out onto plates, George is thankful there is no awkwardness, but Dream acting as though nothing had happened at all feels emptier than silence.

George makes a mental note to find the song later, and then he follows Dream to the table to eat.

“Dream do you know if-” George immediately stops talking as his eyes fall on Dream, asleep on the couch. The TV is still on in the background, some football game that George didn’t quite understand playing on the screen.

George picks up the remote and turns the volume down. He doesn’t want the game to accidentally wake him. George keeps one earbud out as he sits down on the floor next to Dream. He’s been listening to the song from the kitchen on repeat ever since Dream first played it. Every line just hits him right where it hurts.

It’s a great song but George can’t help but feel like it’s mocking him. He knows the lyrics are right. He is afraid. He’s too afraid to tell Dream how he feels, even though those feelings have grown every day.

George turns to the side, nearly face to face with Dream now. George has memorized this face, he knows that no matter where he goes, he’ll have this image of Dream burned into his memories. 

George lifts his hand and gently strokes Dream’s hair, softy and unruly. It would be so easy. George could lean over right now and kiss Dream on his stubborn, beautiful mouth. 

Instead, George forces himself to stand up and walk out of the room, allowing himself one last glance before closing the door behind him.


	2. Chapter 2

One day. One day was all George had left with Dream before flying back home and he still wasn’t any closer to telling Dream how he felt. 

Ever since they met, George’s feelings had only grown. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to go back to the way they were, but he didn’t want to confess over the phone, a thousand miles away, regardless of how Dream would react. He had one more day, one more chance.

George glanced over at Dream who was lying on the floor watching the TV. They had chosen a documentary about coral reefs, Dream insisting they stay in and spend as much time together as possible before George had to leave.

With Dream’s head turned, George allowed himself to relax and stare. He’d been staring a lot recently, terrified that if he didn’t he’d leave Florida and forget Dream’s face. He wanted to remember everything about Dream, the slope of his nose, the way his hair fell in his eyes, the way one edge of his smile was slightly higher than the other.

George finds himself wondering how it would feel to kiss that mouth, those cheekbones, Dream’s strong jawline. He curses himself for thinking that way, especially with Dream so close. They were right next to each other, but to George, there might as well be a chasm between them. They were so far apart George wondered if he could ever bring them close together. If he was brave enough.

_ Tell him,  _ the little voice in George’s head begs.  _ Tell him you love him.  _ And he does. He’s never felt like this, with anyone. He wants to run his hands through Dream’s hair, fall asleep on Dream’s chest, wake up every morning and hear Dream’s laugh. He wants to be close to him. Actually close, a closeness only built on trust. A closeness that can only come from telling the truth, being on the same page.

For a moment, George almost says it. Almost. Instead, he says, “We should do one more stream together.”

Dream grins at him and the butterflies in George’s stomach go wild. “Let’s do it after this is over,” Dream says, the documentary still playing on the TV.

“You’re so far away,” Dream complains. “Come over here.”

George almost says no, he feels like if he gets any closer to Dream he might actually combust, but he has to leave tomorrow. He won’t get another chance to do this. He rises from the couch and sits next to Dream on the floor who has now moved so his back is resting on the seat of the couch.

As George sits down he’s careful not to touch Dream, he’s afraid of what he might do or say, but the effort is fruitless because Dream throws his arm around George and pulls their bodies close. George’s breath hitches and he’s almost certain Dream noticed, but he says nothing about it and looks back to the TV.

George tries his best to relax and ignore the butterflies. He rests his head on Dream’s shoulder and he can feel Dream sigh. George is tired, they’ve been so busy the past few days, this is the first time they’ve really relaxed in days so George lets his eyes close. He thinks Dream might’ve played with his hair and mumbled something to him, but he’s too tired and it’s only a few minutes before he falls asleep.

“George is asked if you could mark down the coords,” Dream says, bringing George out of his trance and back into the real world.

“Yeah I will, sorry.”

“George is really tired guys,” Dream says, continuing to explore, searching for a village. “He fell asleep on my shoulder last night while we were watching a movie.”

“Sorry,” George says, a little embarrassed that Dream had brought that up on stream.

“Don’t be sorry it was cute,” Dream says casually.

“Oh so you think I’m cute?” George asks, only partly joking.

“Yeah I do.”

George’s cheeks must be flaming red by now and he’s smiling like an idiot but he doesn’t care. Dream just called him cute.

Dream only streams for ten minutes longer. He’d already been streaming for 2 hours and there were only three hours left until George’s flight. George felt nervous and empty at the same time. Leaving Dream felt wrong.

“I’m gonna miss you a lot you know,” George says, after the stream turns off. He’s not really sure where he wants this conversation to go, but he wants it to be between him and Dream only. It feels too private to share.

“You know, you don’t have to leave,” Dream says with a playful smile.

“I can’t just stay in your house.”

“I don’t mind.”

“No I’m not gonna overstay my welcome,” George says, wanting more than anything to stay. 

“Don’t you want to spend more time with me?”

“Yes. Of course I do, it's just…”

“Just what?”

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing.”

George wants to tell him. He wants to tell him everything, but the words won’t form. He can’t say anything at all, so instead, he pulls out his phone and plays the song. 

George doesn’t say anything at all as the guitar intro to maybe, i’m afraid plays. He just stands up and moves his chair out of the way, and then holds his hands out to Dream, who lifts George’s arms so his wrists rest on either side of Dream’s neck. It feels so natural, so comforting. It makes George hope Dream understands what he meant when he chose this song;

With the song playing, they don’t have to say anything. With the song playing, George feels closer to Dream than he has since their night in the kitchen. Dream knows exactly what George is trying to say.

They sway silently to the song and George rests his head on Dream’s chest, like he had in the kitchen, and this time Dream wraps his arms around George and pulls him closer into a tight hug. George’s hands move from Dream’s neck to his back, holding him tight, wishing he never had to let go.

“George I need to tell you something,” Dream says softly, but neither of them move. They just want the moment to last a little longer.

Slowly, they let go and George takes a step back, looking up at Dream, who opens his mouth to say something, and then closes it again. Dream glances down at George’s lips. It’s unmistakable, and it’s the spark George needs.  _ Be brave. _

George has to stand on his tiptoes, but he pulls Dream in, kissing him lightly at first, testing the waters. It’s just a brush but he feels Dream’s whole body relax, like putty in his hands. When George leans back in, Dream is waiting for him.

Kissing Dream is like he’d imagined but better. There aren’t just butterflies in George’s gut, there are fireworks. Dream’s lips are soft and his mouth is hot. George has Dream’s face cupped in his hands and his thumbs brush over Dream’s cheekbones.

One of Dream’s hands is in George’s hair, the other on the small of his back, keeping their bodies pressed together. 

George can’t describe how perfectly they fit together, how right it feels to be like this, in each other’s arms. He kisses Dream until he feels lightheaded, but reluctantly, he pulls away.

Dream’s eyes open and in the office lighting, they look like honey or caramel. His lips are a deeper red than before and his hair is sticking up from where George had tangled it in his fingers. But even like this, he was gorgeous. There are so many things George wants to say, but his thoughts are all muddled together. All he can manage is, “beautiful,” which makes Dream laugh.

Dream’s eyes meet George’s and Dream cups George’s cheek in his hand, running his thumb over the soft skin.

“Stay?”

How could George say no?

**Author's Note:**

> haha not me writing this instead of doing homework that was literally due last week :)  
> k love y'all :)


End file.
